Berlin:The Edible Tea in Minden, Freedom in Berlin
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SPRINGTIME IN GERMANY-Minden 6: Berlin:The Edible Tea in Minden, Freedom in Berlin In late December, I received a coy question in the interesting and kept the trip Quite short. Arriving at 6 subject field of an e-mail message from the Netmails in a.m. in Franlrfurt on 3 1 March to a silent but smoky Minden: April I in Minden? Well, it was an invitation airport (they have smoking stations fiom station to to come to Minden to celebrate the Edible Book Tea station in the Frankfurt Airport, where three standing- with a group of senior citizens, who would bake up a room-only circular tables are available for storm and make the trip really worthwhile. What smokers-little do they realize that their smoke followed was the fact that they were raising money for penetrates the air and secondary smoke is tough to a plane ticket for me, asking about dates, times, and take, believe me! The one wonderful thing about what else I wanted to do in Germany for the rest of the Frankfiut is that they whiz you in, welcoming you to week. It seemed all like a dream-until we finally Europe without any di£Eculty. Then you can pick up talked, got faxes back and forth, as well as e-mails-and a cup of coffee, or pick up any paper that your heart the ticket really arrived before I left for desires free of charge to read in the am. such as the RutgedCamden to install "Women of the Book: International Herald Tnheor Financial News or the Jewish Artists, Jewish Themes". Wall Street Journal. Just amazing to get free The installation at Rutgers went so smoothly, thanks newspapers and sit down and wait with something to to Nancy -re, the chief curator and jill-of-all- do at 6 am. trades genius that although it was 6 long days, it was worth it. The opening went well, the 2 hour and 45 MINDEN minute tour through the show on a very wet night Upon arriving in Hannover, my friend Peter proved to hold my audience, and by Wednesday the Kuestermann (aka New)was waiting for me with 30&,I was ready to get to Newark and get on Lufthansa sunshine-glorious warm sunshine. We went to the to Fmnkfurt and Hannover. man-made lake in Hannover and had lunch and he Newark Airport via the Aiirrain is a dream-it feels immediately began to take photos with his digital as thought you were in a futuristic airport, arriving by camera. We returned to the milroad station to take the a train that runs in the sky to your destination which is train to Minden, the home of Melitta coffee, a town glass-enclosed. After taking so many buses to the created by Charlemagne in 800 A.D. Upon arrival, I airport, this truly was a novelty. I checked in and was whisked off to the five-star hotel where I would be waited, as usual, for Newark is an easy transit portal, staying for the rest of my Minden stay. I showered and not like Los Angeles. (We go through security in Los changed and off we went to meet all the people Angeles via fear and trembling, because it has taken so responsible for my beiiin Germany, besides of course long in line to arrive at just the TSA security check!) Peter and Angela, my hosts, who certainly know how Anyway, I sat down and noticed a group of Chassidic to work the crowd and the town. I met the travel agent Jews gathering in the next alcove to pray the afternoon who made it possible for me to have the Lufthama prayer, I guessed. Bowing back and forth like dancers ticket which would allow me to leave from Berlin back choreographed in black moving back and forth, while to Newark and eventually Rutgers. I met the doctor German citizens were taking pictures of their (who must have been 67" tall who had an exhibit of Lufthansa airplane on their way back home. What a the covers of Umbrella on his waiting room wall; then strange and wonderful beginning to a week packed full I met the photo shop owner who turns historic photos of activities, adventures and fr-iendships. into digital printouts-and he gave me two wonderful Next to me on the plane was Ralph, a 79-year-old photos of this beautifid half-timbered town. Later in widower, tall and stately, a world traveler who worked the day a coffee in front of the hotel with a look at the for Goodrich, Mobil, American Express in West beautiful square with wonderful medieval buildings Africa, Bahrain, the United Kingdom. A former Navy which were part of the heritage of this quiet but busy Lieutenant Commander, he was going to visit with old 80,000-population mecca We went down to the colleagues throughout Europe. Our conversationswere Church, which is the headquarters of the Buz Art Center in the Johannis Church, to see the preparations who presentedthe umbrella to me gave a talk about the for the "Essbare Bucher" or Edible Book Tea which history of the book as well as the Umbrella Musew in was to take place on 1 April. Many books had come Italy (near Lago Maggiore) which she had visited with in, and the elaborate madpan fkosthgs and ingenious her daughter with which she was so impressed. Photos designs led me to believe that this would be a were taken and then coffee was served to go along with mnarbble event. We also stopped at a rubberstamp eating the books-some of which were hardly touched shop, which also has classes and workshops, and it is because of their beauty-and then we retired for an hour so successll that the owner, a young woman, is of readings £ram books of prose and poetry about food opening another shop in another part of town. by the writers of all ages in the community. We ate dinner in the Senior Citizens home, Then we went to the great hall, which was decorated N&m-Maus, where we finally met up with Angela with upside down umbrellas hanging from the ceiling, Pahler (the other half of the Nelmails), an old friend as well as a projection of our edible books having been hmwhen Peter and Angela circled the world photographed by Herbert Schmidt on his digital delivering mail art to artists throughout the globe and camera and then put online to be linked with the made the Guinness Book of Records, too. We then boohaeat website. All 42 books had been shot and took a walk to the Old Mill, which is still operating transposed to the computer and we were sending them where buckwheat flour is ground in a water-driven to Beatri05 Coron, our webmaster, to be first in line for stone mill and there is a caf16,and those buckwheat the FMiiIe Tea events all aver the world. I was pancakes were so delicious, remarkably Eresh and light interviewed in front of this awe-inspiring audience that I knew this would be quite a wonderful time. about the event, my history and my impressions of Minden. Then Helmut Annefeld, who was teaching APRIL FlRST computers to the seniors, and I communicated with The morning was glistening, breakfast was abundant New York, probably too early for Beatrice to have the as German break&st always art and it was the best message immediately, to tell her we were sending her muesli I have ever eaten. Then we walked around the the photos of the event. millto see the green everywhere(spring was begianing At the hotel, an ingenious event had been to bud) and saw the dragon boats from Macao which announced, i.e. that I would be "signing umbrellas" for are used for races on the river in July). We saw anyone who would bring me umbrellas that evening. Minden with its half-timbered houses, the details of And so Angela came with a quiver N1 of umbrellas architecturey Joki places (a hous mail artist who which were designated for my signature. She had passed away), including his fhctoq where he made art, selected the proper pens which were permanent and to an interview at Nussbaum-Haus with Sonia Rudolf non-smudging and I began to "sign umbrellas" for the of the Mindener Tageblatt,who asked many pertinent first time in my life. The hotel manager also presented questions about the Edible Tea, why books?, etc. for me with three or four different colored umbrellas to the newspaper. We went down to the Senior Center represent the different political parties that meet in the where 42 books had been made of matzipan, hotel for events, which I signed as well. Angela had pumpernickel and cheese, chocolate and so much also made a rubberstamp in the shape of an umbrella more. "Swan Lake" was made of green Jello for the which said that "This Umbrella was signed by Judith water, creampuffs in the shape of swans with whipped A. Hoflberg in Minden, Germany on 1 April 2005. cream in the body of the swans. We also were being Just amazing! Meanwhile, all of this was being videotaped by WDR in Minden for TV that evening, a documented by Peter. In addition, the program on TV current events program from Minden, at 7:30. came on and we all stopped to see our 3 minutes Everyone was coming in with books, looking and (Warhol wanted us to have 15) on the news broadcast, asking questions, oohing and aahing.